Blog
FDA Overkill on Cigarette Packaging
Get ready to see nine sensationalistic images depicting the dangers of smoking on cigarette packs beginning September 2012. Rotted lungs and teeth, chest holes,…
Blog
CEI Submits FOIA Requests to DOT Over California High-Speed Rail
This morning, the Department of Transportation should receive the two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests I submitted on behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
What Really Makes “Postcards from Hell”
Foreign Policy just ran another “Postcards from Hell” feature detailing the worst of the worst from their “Failed States Index.” It’s worth a look.
Blog
No Such Thing as an Average Cancer Patient
CEI Senior Fellow Greg Conko has an excellent piece in today's Wall Street Journal. Greg doesn't think it's right that the FDA is denying terminally…
Blog
Supreme Court Overturns Certification of Class-Action Lawsuit Against Wal-Mart in Multi-Billion Dollar Lawsuit
Yahoo! News reports that "the Supreme Court has ruled for Wal-Mart in its fight to block a massive sex discrimination lawsuit on behalf of…
Blog
The Cloak-and-Dagger Fed
Wiretaps, surveillance, and searches of private property cannot be authorized and executed without a warrant issued by a judge, who (hopefully) maintains the commitment to…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
The Few, The Proud, The Greek Liberals (It’s Lonely Being a Libertarian in Greece)
As the crisis in the eurozone continues to spiral out of control, I’ve sometimes thought about what must be going through the heads of…
Blog
In Journalism, Scaremongering Pays — Or, Is Ethical Journalism an Oxymoron?
As legal commentator Ted Frank notes, ABC was rewarded for deliberate scaremongering and deceptive reporting that created needless fear and anxiety among Toyota owners…
Blog
Lessons in Entrepreneurship: Lemonade Stand Edition
Lemonade stands are technically illegal in Montgomery County, Maryland.
Blog
CEI Weekly: CEI Scores Latest Congressional Labor Vote
Blog
Government’s Next Scapegoat
The SEC is bringing fraud charges against leading credit-rating companies for not being thorough enough in their research to determine ratings on mortgage-backed securities…
Blog
Life, Liberty, and Internet?
Josh Smith reports in National Journal that Representative Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), has proposed legislation to provide subsidized Internet services to low-income Americans. The…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Weeks v. Kellogg – Rice Krispies class action settlement
In 2009, the state of Oregon complained to Kellogg that they said Rice Krispies and Cocoa Krispies were fortified with antioxidants, and Kellogg changed the…
Blog
Government-Subsidized Murder: Cannibal Ph.D Candidate Studies Homicide at Taxpayer Expense
"While pursuing a PhD in “homicide studies” at the British taxpayers’ expense, a man with a long history of criminal violence became a…
Blog
CEI Podcast for June 15, 2011: Do ATMs Kill Jobs?
In a recent NBC interview, President Obama blamed ATMs for taking away bank tellers' jobs. Communications Coordinator Lee Doren points out that innovation doesn't affect…
Blog
Wisconsin Supreme Court Upholds Collective Bargaining Law, Reversing Court Ruling Striking It Down
In a 4-to-3 vote, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has upheld the state's new law limiting collective bargaining with government-employee unions. As the Heritage Foundation's…
Blog
FDA Should Not Mandate Comparative Effectiveness Trials
AEI resident fellow Scott Gottlieb has a new paper out explaining why the FDA should not force…
Blog
Sunblock: Still Can’t Protect You from the FDA
The FDA is rolling out new labeling rules for sunscreen. First, sunscreens that don’t offer “enough” UVA protection (which has been shown to prevent…
Blog
Standardized Test Scores Continue to Disappoint
Children would be far better served if government were to take a leading role in K-12 education… oh, wait.
Blog
Shovel-Ready Was Never Shovel-Ready
President Obama has belatedly realized that the “shovel-ready projects” he touted so much in his stimulus bill two years ago were anything but: “Shovel-ready…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Remembering Roger MacBride
Blog
Voodoo Economics Behind Government Demand for Mortgage Write-Downs by Big Banks
In 2010, Obama administration allies proposed a trillion-dollar bailout for those lucky mortgage borrowers whose loans were owned by the government-backed mortgage giants Fannie…
Blog
A Modest Proposal to Add Jobs and Reduce Injuries
Blog
Legal Lessons from Weinergate
Blog
Stimulating Bureaucracy: The Stimulus’s Only Success
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Ending Project Labor Agreements Vote Determines Congress’s Agenda: Jobs or Cronies?
Openmarket.org In a vote today, the House of Representatives will determine whether federal construction projects will be open to competitive bidding. In 2009, President Obama…
Blog
American Sociological Review Finds that Right-to-Work States are Better for Business
The June publication of the American Sociological Review contained research on right-to-work states. The research in “Laws of Attraction: Regulatory Arbitrage in the Face of…
Blog
More Free Speech Violations in New Mexico? Prior Restraint Against Billboard Likely
Last year, a New Mexico court issued a domestic-violence restraining order against David Letterman on behalf of a deluded woman who had never met…
Blog
Tea Party vs. Tea Partly
In noticing the upcoming debate tonight featuring Republican contenders, I wondered to myself under which candidate would the federal government actually be smaller after four…
Blog
Ending Project Labor Agreements Vote Determines Congress’s Agenda: Jobs or Cronies?
In a vote today, the House of Representatives will determine whether federal construction projects will be open to competitive bidding. In 2009, President Obama issued…
Blog
Bankruptcy creditor objections: “Hipster Battles Funds”
A bankruptcy court reorganization approval has some similarities to a class action settlement fairness hearing, as the court engages in an equitable inquiry to determine…
Blog
More States, Politicians Jump on the Internet Gambling Bandwagon
The oncoming legalization of online poker charges ahead this week with more lawmakers “seeing the light” or at least the potential revenue dollars that online…
Blog
John Hospers, RIP
Blog
Unions kill jobs: Just ask the unemployed in South Carolina
The Examiner With an unemployment rate of 9.8 percent, South Carolina is in dire economic straits, and so in desperate need of the 1,000 jobs…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Baby products objection
As discussed at Point of Law, CCAF has filed an objection to the Babies “R” Us settlement in McDonough v. Toys “R” Us,…
Blog
Police Celebrate Seized Online Gambling Funds
Roughly one week ago, an article appeared in The Odenton Patch covering an Anne Arundel County Police Department press conference where our benevolent…
Blog
Alcohol Regulation Roundup: June 10, 2011
Reporting from around the nation on the ridiculous, the sad, and the sometimes positive news about the state of alcohol regulations. National: BuyaBeerCompany.com, a…
Blog
Regulation Roundup
A new Senate bill would make lip-synching to other people’s music a jailable offense, plus more.
Blog
Breaking Up is Hard to Do for Michigan Brewers
If you thought leaving a spouse was tough, just be thankful that you're not a brewery in need of a divorce from your dead-beat distributor.
Blog
CEI Weekly: Annual Dinner Is a Night to Remember
Blog
Yet Another Way That Obamacare Is Unconstitutional: The Arguments in Florida v. HHS
In the Washington Examiner, I discuss the brief I recently filed on behalf of Minnesota and North Carolina legislators challenging Obamacare, which…
Blog
Cato: Downsizing the Department of Labor
Cato’s latest endeavor, downsizing the Federal Government: Labor Department, emphasizes the ineffectiveness and restrictions put in place by the Department of Labor. DOL has…
Blog
Stealing You Blind: Drugging Monkeys on Your Dime
Blog
Obama Administration Votes Against England, Supporting Argentine-Backed Resolution on the Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are English-speaking and have been part of the United Kingdom for generations. Although Argentina unsuccessfully tried to conquer them in 1982, they…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
CEI Podcast for June 9, 2011: The Other Black Friday
Online poker has been illegal since April 15, now called Black Friday by poker fans. Policy Analyst Michelle Minton goes over the controversy and explains…
Blog
The Greatest Video Never Shown
Blog
GOP Durbin Dozen Blocks Dodd-Frank Rollback
Anywhere but the Senate, getting 54 votes out of 100 is a victory. And yesterday, a bipartisan group 0f 54 Senators responded to concerns…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Regulation of the Day 180: Braiding Hair
Businesses often use regulations as a cudgel to bludgeon their competitors. Occupational licensing is one of the most-abused types of regulation.
Blog
Delaying Dodd-Frank’s Durbin Price Controls Would Save Retailers From Themselves
Today is the day, as a bipartisan amendment comes to the Senate floor delaying draconian price controls on debit card transaction fees from Dodd-Frank's Durbin Amendment, that the Senate has an…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
The Last Nail in the Coffin for the Fairness Doctrine?
In response to calls by lawmakers for the Fairness Doctrine and related measures to be permanently removed from the Federal Register, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski…
Blog
Why Cross-Examination Rights Matter in Campus Sexual Harassment Cases under Title IX
As part of its broader attack on safeguards against false accusations, the federal Education Department is urging colleges to strip students and faculty of…
Blog
Failures of Auto Bailouts Hidden by Deceptive Accounting and Bogus Jobs Figures
Mounting evidence shows that the auto bailouts weren't worth it. They have been far more costly, and less successful, than claimed, as even liberal…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
BitCoins: Four Objections
Blog
Liberal Economist Peter Diamond Withdraws from Contention for Federal Reserve
MIT’s Peter Diamond has withdrawn his nomination to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. I earlier explained how Diamond’s nomination by…
Blog
Wisconsin Proposal Hurts Craft Beer, Protects Big Brewers
In the battle between international brewing giants SABMiller and ABInBev, Wisconsin craft brewers could bear the heaviest burden. On May 31, the state legislature’s Joint…
Blog
Regulation of the Day 179: Giving Food to Homeless People
Last Wednesday, three people were arrested in Orlando for giving food to homeless people.
Blog
E. Coli Outbreak Linked to Organic Farming … Again
Although it’s not 100 percent certain at this time, German health officials are becoming increasingly certain that the recent E. coli…
Blog
Even Liberal Washington Post Casts Doubt on Auto Bailouts
"Only 16 percent of executives in the auto industry" support the Chrysler bailout, according to the Washington Post’s editorial today. I think the bailout…
Blog
BitCoins: All Buzz, No Substance
Blog
Regulation of the Day 178: Helping Tornado Victims
Mike Haege, a tree-trimmer in Hastings, Minnesota, was threatened with jail and fined $275 for helping clear damaged trees from tornado victims' yards.
Blog
California Social Networking Bill In Its Death Throes
In Sacramento, California, a bill that would regulate social networking is reportedly on its death bed after failing by five votes last week. The online…
Blog
Obama’s Chrysler Fiat — Missing Jobs Under the Hood
“So far the auto industry’s added 113,000 jobs over the past two years.” So proclaimed President Obama in a speech at the Chrysler/Fiat plant in…
Blog
President Obama’s Speech Perpetuates Bailout Payback Myth
In his speech just completed at a Toledo, Ohio Chrysler plant, President Obama continued the government PR work on behalf of bailed out auto…
Blog
Regulation Roundup
Tennessee makes it illegal to use someone else's Netflix password, plus more.
Blog
NFL, Players in Court Today
Today is a crucial day in the ongoing labor dispute between the NFL and the supposedly disbanded players’ union, the NFLPA as they return to…
Blog
Planning to Disaster: San Diego and California’s Sustainable Communities Strategies
The San Diego metro area has been institutionalizing its boring reputation by undertaking in recent years what is arguably the most aggressive regional planning effort…
Blog
CEI FOIA Request Reveals Relationship Between Treasury Department and GM
Blog
How Free Is America?
Pajamas Media Americans are accustomed to thinking of themselves as the freest people on Earth. Except that according to the Heritage Foundation’s 2011 Index of…
Blog
Official Time: Union Activity on the Taxpayers’ Dime
Government Executive summarizes the Office of Personnel Management’s report on the use of official time, whereby unionized federal employees carry out union business…
Blog
A Culture of Deceit
Last month Governor John Lynch issued a statement explaining his veto of HB 474 to make New Hampshire a right-to-work state. His explanation included:…
Blog
An Alaskan Mining Project: One Example of How Environmental Regulations are Strangling the U.S. Economy
Rick Manning of Americans for Limited Government notes here that one of the reasons the American economy is stuck in neutral is that investors…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Top 3 Myths about Immigration
According to Ben Powell, the three most common immigration myths are that immigrants are a drag on the economy, they steal our jobs, and that…
Blog
Report: Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) Bridge Will Lose $4.5 Billion Over 20 Years
Via Peter Samuel of TOLLROADSnews, a new report from Conway MacKenzie estimates the proposed Detroit River International Crossing (DRIC) bridge would lose in…
Blog
Briefing in Cobell v. Salazar Indian trust class action
Details at Point of Law.
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
CEI Podcast for May 31, 2011: FDA Rescinds Approval of Breast Cancer Drug
Conko believes this battle boils down to one question: who decides which treatments patients can use? Will it be the FDA, or doctors and patients?…
Blog
Liberalize High-Skilled Immigration
Over at the Daily Caller, Alex Nowrasteh and I tell the story of Jeffrey Lin. He is a Ph.D student at CalTech who holds three…
Blog
California High-Speed Rail All Strung Out on Stimulus on the Outskirts of Town
Emily Washington of Market Urbanism highlights this Los Angeles Times article on the latest — depending on your outlook: hilarious or pathetic —…
Blog
Fiscal Conservatives Must Turn Policy Debate to General
Blog
New York City Health Officials: No Fun for Adults
Last year we watched as the FDA used its regulatory might to institute a de-facto ban on alcoholic energy drinks like Four Loko, Joose,…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Yet More Proof that the Supreme Court is Not Pro-Business
The Supreme Court has ruled against the Chamber of Commerce's challenge to an Arizona law punishing businesses that hire illegal aliens by taking away…
Blog
Regulation Roundup
Some of the zanier happenings in the world of regulation:…
Blog
Morning Media Summary
Blog
Shedding Light on Light Bulbs — Don’t Count on the NYT
In its “Home and Garden” section yesterday, The New York Times did it again: in what should have been a straight-forward puff piece about…
Blog
Barney Frank Used Influence with Fannie Mae, the Failed Mortgage Giant Bailed Out by Taxpayers
Former House Banking Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) tenaciously opposed efforts to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored mortgage…
Blog
CEI Podcast for May 26, 2011: President Obama Proposes Deregulation
Cass Sunstein, President Obama's regulatory czar, announced today that the administration intends to repeal regulations from 30 different agencies. CEI Vice President for Strategy Iain…
Blog
Sen. Hatch Questions Illogic of Holding Three Trade Agreements Hostage to TAA
Consideration of the three pending trade pacts -- with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea -- presents a conundrum. The administration is saying that these Free…
Blog
Obama’s Regulatory Reform: The Costs of Benefits
My colleagues commented above on the Cass Sunstein lecture at the American Enterprise Institute called "Regulatory Look-Back: A First Look," about agency's supposed eagerness to…